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BL 10-inch Mk I – IV naval gun
(31.75 calibres) Mks II - IV : (32 calibres) |width= |height= |crew= |cartridge= |caliber= |action= |rate= |velocity= 500 lb projectile, with 252 lb brown prism powder (gunpowder) or 76 lb cordite propellant size 30. Text Book of Gunnery 1902 |range= |max_range= |feed= |sights= |breech= |recoil= |carriage= |elevation= |traverse= }} The 'BL 10 inch guns Mks I, II, III, IV'Mks I, II, III, IV = Marks 1, 2, 3, 4. Britain used Roman numerals to designate marks (models) of ordnance until after World War II. Hence this article covers the four models of British BL 10-inch guns. were British rifled breechloading 32-calibre naval and coast defence guns in service from 1885. History The British 10-inch calibre originated with the Committee on Ordnance in 1879 when it ordered a new 10.4-inch gun together with the new 9.2-inch Hogg & Thurston 1972, page 176 as part of its transition from muzzle-loading to breech-loading guns. The proposed 10.4-inch gun eventually went into service in 1885 as a 10-inch gun firing a 500-pound projectile. After Mk IV of 1889 the Royal Navy discontinued the 10-inch calibre in favour of 9.2-inch and 12-inch. Naval service ]] Mks II, III and IV guns were interchangeable and equipped the following warships : * ''Victoria''-class battleships laid down 1885 * ''Centurion''-class battleships laid down 1890 * ''Renown'' laid down in 1893 * ''Devastation''-class battleships as re-gunned in 1890 25-ton gun for Victoria A 25-ton version with a bore of 300 inches (30 calibres) and firing a 450-pound projectile was supplied in 1884 to the Australian colony of Victoria, mounted on the gunboat [[HMVS Victoria (1884)|HMVS Victoria]].[http://www.cerberus.com.au/fclick/fclick.php?id=139 Manual for Victorian naval forces 1887. HMVS Cerberus website] This gun was subsequently replaced on Victoria by an 8-inch gun, and in 1887 was mounted at Fort Franklin as a coast defence gun.David Spethman, The Garrison Guns of Australia 1788-1962 page 89, published by Ron H Mortensen, Inala, Qld, 2008. Coast defence gun Mk I was an Elswick Ordnance design used only for coastal defence. Mks II, III and IV were interchangeable Woolwich Arsenal designs used on warships but also for coastal defense around the British Empire, some on disappearing carriages.DiGiulian See also * List of naval guns Surviving examples * Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence * Portsea, Victoria, Australia * Fort McNab, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada Notes and references Bibliography * [http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/u?/p4013coll11,230 Text Book of Gunnery], 1902. London: Printed for His Majesty's Stationery Office, by Harrison and Sons, St. Martin's Lane * I. V.Hogg & L. F. Thurston, British Artillery Weapons & Ammunition 1914-1918. London: Ian Allan, 1972. * Tony DiGiulian, British 10"/32 (25.4 cm) Marks I, II, III and IV External links * Handbook for the 10 inch B. L. gun, 1892, 1895, 1900, 1904 at State Library of Victoria * Instructions for 10 inch rifled breech loading Armstrong gun and automatic naval carriage and slide Describes 25-ton gun supplied to Victoria. From Australian National Archives *Mk III disappearing mounting diagram at Victorian Forts and Artillery website *Elswick Mk I coastal defence barbette mounting diagram at Victorian Forts and Artillery website Category:Naval guns of the United Kingdom Category:Coastal artillery Category:254 mm artillery Category:Victorian-era weapons of the United Kingdom Category:Disappearing guns